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The King County Council voted along party lines Monday to authorize an all mail-in ballot election, but it unanimously supported a provision that would delay the move until key elements of the elections department are in place.

And that could push back all mail-in voting for the state's largest county as far out as 2009.

Thirty-four of Washington's 39 counties have already switched to all vote-by-mail elections.

But before King County's new system can be put in place:

A new elections director and superintendent of elections must be hired.

And the cost estimates for the proposed regional voting centers and ballot drop-off centers must be approved by the council.

The council's five Democrats voted to OK the all-mail elections, while the four Republicans opposed the plan.

The county can begin voter information and other preparations for the switch, "but the actual implementation of vote by mail cannot happen until these requirements are met," said Councilman Bob Ferguson, a Democrat who proposed the amendment that was passed unanimously.

In all, the additional requirements of the bill could put off the implantation of the new system for several years.

"We need to take a little time," said Republican Councilmember Kathy Lambert, who recommended giving voters the final say on the new system. "Obviously we have so many changes coming in our elections department right now, so we may have some time."

The original proposed change hit a snag last week when Dean Logan, director of King County elections, announced his resignation.

King County Executive Ron Sims had planned for an August 2007 rollout of the vote-by-mail system, which the County Council voted on Monday after several delays.

"Working with the council, we have crafted amendments to acknowledge that Dean's departure may impact the timeline for implementation," he said. "The amendments allow us to move forward in a thoughtful manner and provide several key check-in points with the council."

Nonetheless, Sims has not ruled out the possibility of satisfying the new requirements by next year.

According to his spokesman, Sandeep Kaushik, "2007 is by no means absolutely off the table."

Although the new requirements alone would present a formidable challenge for the county to satisfy by 2008, they are not the only hurdle ahead for those pushing for all mail-in ballots.

Even if the county complies with the new requirements, doing so will not automatically trigger the new system, it only clears the way.

And the 2008 presidential election would be an unlikely first run for a new system.

"The ordinances simply authorize King County to conduct a vote-by-mail election and provide the money to take the initial steps for all-mail voting," Sims said of the council vote.

Logan was present at Monday's hearing to answer questions of the council.

Council Chairman Larry Phillips said the authorization was a well thought-out response to an issue that has become a political lightning rod.

"We cannot control the rhetoric of individual members, of political parties, of newspapers or bloggers," Phillips said. "So I want to point out the collaborative nature of this effort, regardless of the white-hot rhetoric which has surrounded it from time to time."